Church Conflict Resolution

When you think about the fact that Jesus said that the world would hate us and that we have an enemy in Satan, it shouldn’t surprise us when conflict takes places in church and between Christians. When conflict takes place, unfortunately, what suffers is the gospel. You would certainly think that we would be expectant and prepared when this takes place. Author Michael Hare seeks to tackle this issue in his book When Church Conflict Happens: A Proven Process for Resolving Unhealthy Disagreements and Embracing Healthy Ones.
The author comes at this topic with a wealth of experiencing having served over two decades in the role of senior pastor with most of that in what would be considered turnaround ministries. What that means is that he has seen his share of church conflict and has navigated churches through conflict and to health. He has severed over 15 years a church conflict consultant.
Hare does a good job of teaching us to map out the conflict to see what is truly going on in the situation at hand. He talks about the outward signs that we should be looking for in conflict so that we can address an issue before it gets out of hand.
I especially enjoyed the chapter on spiritual gifts where he showed how different gift sets can lead to conflict if we are not aware of the possibility.
His book has plenty of interacting section where you are encouraged to come map out the conflict discussed and provide your own possible solutions to the situation at hand. The book is also filled with stories that the reader most certainly can relate to.
Do I think that this book would be helpful to a pastor or church leader? Most certainly. To take the time to dissect what is truly going on in a situation and how to best overcome it, is time well spent. As the author points out, the church and personal relationships can grow stronger by going through the process.
It took me a while to read this book because of recent personal pain that I’ve gone through in my own life. I wished that I had a copy of it sooner. I feel a pastor and church leader must be prepared because of the warnings that Christ Himself has put forth.
The book is a 249 page read and is published by Moody Publishers.
I received a copy of this book for an honest review.